Wear plate for hinge-lugs



Malh l, 1955 G. R. ANDERsl-:N

WEAR PLATE FOR HINGE-Lues Filed Feb. 5, 1955 United States Patent() WEAR PLATE FOR HINGE-LUGS George R. Andersen, Oak Park, Ill., assignor to T-Z Railway Equipment Co., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application February s, 1953, serial No. 335,313 3 claims. (c1. 30s-L47) The invention relates to wear elements for hinge-lugs on railway journal boxes for pivotally supportlng the box cover.

Journal boxes for the axles of railway trucks are usually equipped with spring devices engaging a cam on the hinge-lug for a cover, for alternately pressing the cover in sealing contact with the body of the box and holding the cover in its open position for access to the journal in the box for supplying lubricant. These cams are subject to severe wear which produces looseness between the cover and said body and results in the entry of dust or other foreign matter to the bearing surfaces in the box.

One object of the invention is to provide a wear element which can be -expeditiously applied to the hingelug while the railway car remains in service or without necessitating the sending of the car to the repair shop when the hinge-lug becomes worn, -or replacement is necessary.

Another object of the invention is to provide a snnple and eflcient wear element for hinge-lugs on railway journal boxes, which can be readily installed or removed when the cover is detached from the box.

Other objects will appear from the detailed description.

The invention consists in the several novel features hereinafter described and more particularly defined by claims at the conclusion hereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of the wear element attached to a hinge-lug;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the wear element before it is installed on the hinge-lug of the journal box;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through the hinge-lug on the journal box and the wear element on the lug with the cover in its closed position;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the hinge-lug with the wear element applied thereto, and the pivot pin;

Fig. 5 is al front elevation, the cover-supporting arm being shown in section.

The invention is exemplified as applied to a railway journal box of standard construction which includes a journal box 8 with an opening 9 in its front for access to the journal for lubrication while the car is in service, a cover 10 adapted to tit against the front of the box, and an arm or hanger 11 on which the cover 10 is supported for self adjustment and a dust-tight t between the box and the cover. A hinge-lug, generally designated 12, is integral with the top of the box 8, and a pivot pin or shaft 13 extends through the hinge-lug and the side anges of arm 11 for pivotally supporting the cover. The hinge-lug includes ears 14 at its ends and a V-shaped cam, generally designated 15, between said ears. The pivot pin 13 is endwise removable from the hinge-lug 12 and the side lugs 11a on the arrn 11, to permit the arm 11 and the cover to be detached from the box.

A torsion spring, generally designated 19 is housed in and supported by the arm 11 in front of the hingelug and includes a pair of coils 20 conned on instruck lugs 21a on the sides of arm 11, terminals 21 engaging the front wall of arm 11, and a loop 22 between coils 20. A roller 23 is journalled on the cross member of loop 22. V-shaped cam is integral with the hinge-lug and adapted to alternately press the cover against the front of the box and into its raised or open position. The cam 15 has a vertical face 16 for exerting pressure on roller 23 to urge arm 11 to press cover 10 against the front of ICC the box, and a topface 17 which is adapted to press arm 11 to hold the cover raised as well` understood in the art. In practice, it has been found that the cam 15 becomes worn which results in looseness of the cover on the box with resultant entry of dust or dirt, which is detrimental to the bearing surfaces in the box.

The invention provides aA demountable wear element, generally designated 26, which is adapted-to be applied on the hinge-lug while the railway car remains in service or without the necessity of sending the car to the Shop for replacement or repairs. This element 26 is formed of a one piece stamping of wear-resisting steel, and -includes a ange 27 which is adapted to overliethe vertical face 16 of cam 15 and a flange 28 adapted to overlie the top face 17 of said cam. These anges are adapted to provide replacement surfaces for the faces 1,6 and 17 on the hinge-lug when they become worn from the operation of roller 23 for insuring pressure engagement between the cover 12 and the box 10. The front ange 27 of the wear element has an extension 29 below and under the cam surface 16 and a strip 30 is welded to the rear face of the lower end of said extension. Strip 30 is of sufficient length to extend across the rear face of extension 29 of the wear element and across and beyond the front face of ears 14 to provide ends which are adapted to be bent against the end faces of ears 14. The flange 28 of wear element 26 has a rear extension 32 which extends across the back of cam 15 and a strip 34 is welded to the rear face of the lower end of extension 32. Strip 34 is also of suliicient length to extend across the back of cam 15 and the ears 14, and beyond the end faces of said ears to provide ends which are adapted to be bent against said end faces. The ends of strips 30 and 34 are adapted to function as tongues which are bendable against the outer ends pf ears 14 for securing the wear element on the hinge- To install the wear element on the hinge-lug of a journal box on a railway car in service, it is only necessary to remove the pivot pin 13 endwise from the hingelug so that the cover 10 and the roller 23 and spring 19 mounted thereon can be disconnected and removed from the journal box. The hinge-lug 15 will then be accessible. The wear element 26 as illustrated in Fig. 2 can then be applied to the hinge-lug, the extensions 29 and 32 being sufficiently exible to straddle and permit element 26 to slip over cam 15 on the hinge-lug. The flanges 27 and 28 of the element 26 will extend over the worn sections on cam faces 16 and 17 of the cam 15 and provide replacement cam surfaces for roller 23. The extension 29 of the wear element will position the strip 30 so it will iit under the lower front portion of ears 14 and the outer ends of said strips will project beyond the outer face of the ends of ears 14. The extension 32 will then position the strip 34 so it will lit against the inclined back face of ears 14 with the outer ends of the strip projecting beyond the end faces of said ears. The projecting ends of strip 30 and strip 34 will be bent against the outer faces of ears 14 to form locking tongues 35 and 36, and thereby demountably secure the wear element on the hinge-lug. When the wear element 26 has been thus applied to the hinge-lug, the cover 10 and pivot pin can be replaced on the box, as well understood in the art. The cam surfaces or flanges 27 and 28 of the wear element will then function with the roller 23 and spring 19 to alternately press the cover to its closed position or hold it in its raised position.

An important characteristic of the invention is that it provides a wear element for a cam on the hinge-lug which can be applied to or installed on the journal box while the railway car is in service, or without requiring it to be sent to the repair shop for that purpose. The element is simple in construction and can be readily removed for replacement when it becomes worn. If desired, the wear element may be applied to an unworn hinge-lug for increased wear. When that is done, the tongues 35 and 36 can be bent to permit the wear element to be removed from the hinge-lug, so that the cam 15 on the hinge-lug will serve for the operation of roller 23 until it can be provided with yanother wear element. The element functions as a clip which straddles the hinge-lug for replacement cam surfaces to keep the spring pressure Y means effective to retain the cover seated on the box. By forming the cam and strips of separate pieces of metal and welding them together, the wear elements may be economically produced.

The invention is not to be understood as restricted to the details set forth, since these may be modified within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the. spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a railway journal box provided with an integral hinge-lug including angular earn faces thereon and projecting ears at the ends of said cam faces, of a removable wear plate fitting over said cam faces, terminating inwardly of said ears and having downward extensions from said cam faces, and strips on and projecting longitudinally from the lower ends of the downward extensions, extending across the front and rear of the ears respectively, and bendable around the ends of the ears, for removably securing the wear plate on the lug.

2. The combination with a railway journal box provided with an integral hinge-lug including angular cam faces thereon andrprojecting ears at the ends of said cam faces, of a removable wear plate fitting over said cam faces,

terminating inwardly of said ears and having downward extensions from said cam faces, and strips welded on and projecting longitudinally from the lower ends of the downward extensions, extending across the front and rear of the ears respectively, and bendable around the ends of the ears, for removably securing the wear plate on the lug.

3. The combination with a railway journal box pro vided with an integral hinge-lug including angular cam faces thereon and projecting ears at the ends of and projecting from said cam faces, of a removable wear element fitting over said cam faces, terminating inwardly of said ears and extending downwardly from said cam faces, a strip welded on and projecting longitudinally from the lower end of the inner face of one of the downward extensions, and a strip welded on and projecting from the outer face of the other downward extension, said extensions extending across the front and rear of the ears, and bendable around the ends of the ears for removably securing the wear element on the lug.

Couch Oct. 1l, 1932 Baselt Oct. 14, 1952 

